Dhaka, Sept 2 (V7N) – A coalition of 22 opposition political parties, including the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Jamaat-e-Islami, National Citizen Party (NCP), Islami Andolon Bangladesh, and Gono Odhikar Parishad, held an all-party meeting on Monday with the goal of forming a united front against what they described as rising fascism in the country.
 
The meeting took place at the central office of Gono Odhikar Parishad in Bijoynagar, Dhaka. Leaders from the participating parties raised their hands together to symbolically express unity against authoritarianism and political repression.
 
Speakers at the meeting demanded judicial accountability for recent political violence, particularly the attack on Gono Odhikar Parishad President Nurul Haque Nur and other party activists. They called for the immediate formation of a judicial inquiry committee within 48 hours to investigate the incident, as previously promised by the government but not yet implemented.
 
Rashed Khan, General Secretary of Gono Odhikar Parishad, stated during the press briefing that the failure to form the committee within the given timeframe would lead to increased political action. “Those who attacked Nurul Haque Nur and other activists must be arrested and held accountable,” he added.
 
He also emphasized the importance of unity among anti-fascist forces:
“It has become clear to us that divisions within our own camp have made us vulnerable. The attack on Nur was a calculated move, taking advantage of our disunity. Today’s meeting was a consensus-building step toward rebuilding that unity.”
 
Participants in the meeting collectively agreed that the ruling Awami League, along with its coalition partner Jatiya Party and the 14-party alliance, represent what they described as a “fascist force” that should be held legally accountable.
 
To protest the attack and demonstrate solidarity, the coalition resolved to hold a public rally at the Central Shaheed Minar. Leaders said this event would serve as a gathering of all anti-fascist political groups committed to democratic change.
 
Among the participants were BNP Joint Secretary General Habib-un-Nabi Khan Sohel; A.H.M. Hamidur Rahman Azad of Jamaat-e-Islami; Akhtar Hossain and Ariful Islam Adib of NCP; Ashraf Ali Akand of Islami Andolon; Syed Ehsanul Huda of Bangladesh National Party; Mostafizur Rahman Iran of the Labour Party; Ahsan Habib Lincon of Jatiya Party (Zafar); Ahmad Ali Qasemi of Khilafat Majlis; Jalal Uddin Ahmed of Bangladesh Khilafat Majlis; Rashed Pradhan of JAGPA; Faruk Hasan and Hasan Al Mamun of Gono Odhikar Parishad; Anwar Shahadat Tutul of AB Party; Abdul Kader of Bhashani Janashakti Party; Muhammad Ullah Madhu of Gono Forum; Dr. Syed Nurul Islam of National Samyabadi; Mohammad Mominul Amin of NDM; Khokon Chandra Das of Democratic League; and Akbar Khan of the Revolutionary Workers Party, among others.
 
The coalition reaffirmed that their upcoming protest at Shaheed Minar would represent not a single party, but a broader national movement against repression, state-sponsored violence, and erosion of democratic norms.
 
The rare collective stance signals growing frustration among opposition groups with increasing authoritarianism and political marginalization in Bangladesh’s evolving political landscape.
 
END/AJ/SMA/